extra calories given thru excercise

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Jess21684
Jess21684 Posts: 202 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Should I be always eating back the extra calories I burn off thru my workouts or do you guys just eat your minium amount and try not to eat back those extra calories it gives back to you?! I figure if I dont get back those calories, it would just mean more lbs lost quicker right? but days I feel extra hungry, i may sometimes eat back some of them. Just wanted to know what other people do...

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  • wowamom87
    wowamom87 Posts: 63 Member
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    I was wondering about this too. I would guess not to eat them back unless you really need to. Love to hear what others have to say.
  • aimeemaryrose
    aimeemaryrose Posts: 36
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    I try not to eat them either but I read somewhere that you're supposed to! Interested to hear why we should. I would have thought it would speed up weight loss if you didn't? Advice please!
  • shilpaca
    shilpaca Posts: 22 Member
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    It is about creating a deficiet so that u are taking in less calories and burning more to lose wt. So if you stick to the recommended daily allowance then you are going to be adding to more calories lost in a day which will add up to the wt loss.
  • AnnaleisJ
    AnnaleisJ Posts: 50 Member
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    The way I do it...eat my minimum (in my case 1,200). If I'm still hungry then I eat my exercise calories. Basically if my body is hungry then I'm not going to starve myself when I have calories left over but at the same time just because they're there doesn't mean you have to eat them all! :o)
  • 0145528
    0145528 Posts: 25
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    If you dip below a certain calorie level consistently, your body can react by triggering processes in the body that are normally only triggered when starvation occurs. You'd still get lighter, but only because you're absorbing muscle tissue for energy at that point. Granted, this is caused by a pretty drastic calorie deficit. If there is confusion or concern, be sure to contact a licensed nutritionist and doctor regarding the pattern of eating that you're on or are considering.
  • runningneo122
    runningneo122 Posts: 6,962 Member
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    The daily goal already has a built in defecit based on the weight loss goal you set up. Eating the exercise cals is essential or you will make too large a defecit each day triggering the body's survival instinct known as starvation mode. It usually takes several consecutive large defecit days to trigger this. There are posts on the Board that have a red pushpin next to them that explain this further. Some people will post that this is a myth - don't believe an opinion - trust the people who have actually done studies on this.
  • jonathandavid_t
    jonathandavid_t Posts: 107 Member
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    I'd suggest eating the vast majority of the "exercise calories" as the body needs fuel to function and preserve muscle mass. If you effectively drop your calorie intake by say 1200 below baseline instead of 500 below baseline, because you for example did 700kcal worth of exercise, you're effectively starving your body so it will start breaking down muscle mass to provide fuel.

    Not eating the calories will of course make you lose weight quicker, but you'll feel tired and out of energy and be losing muscle mass that otherwise would be burning energy even while you sleep. Leading into a cycle of a lower basal metabolic rate, so having to cut your calorie intake even further to lose any weight, and a vicious cycle downwards.
  • morganadk2_deleted
    morganadk2_deleted Posts: 1,696 Member
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    read these! they might help

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficit

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • rachel303
    rachel303 Posts: 17
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    My understanding of why we need to eat these calories back is to stop our bodies going into starvation mode. Without our exercise calories, we still have a deficit which will allow us to lose weight. Mine is set to 2lb per week. So if I burn 500 cals and eat them all back, I'm still going to lose 2lb. If you don't eat your cals back then your body will of course lose weight faster to start with, but then it will come to a standstill and what ever calories you consume will be stored, so eventually you will gain weight from eating very little. We all want to lose weight fast, but in order to keep it off for life we need to do it at a slow and steady pace
  • MrsSassyPants
    MrsSassyPants Posts: 223 Member
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    It just depends on how hungry you are. Sometimes after working out I'm really hungry...so I eat some or most of the extra calories or I'll choose to eat something a little more filling. Other days I'm not as hungry so I don't eat all of the calories back. I think the key is to eat healthy for added energy, be patient, and eat things you really like because no one wants to feel hungry! I do this by measuring my portions and using lower fat less sugar foods. I didn't realize what a difference this could make in calories!!!
  • curleesam
    curleesam Posts: 462 Member
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    YES YES YES!!! Eat as many of your exercise calories as you can! There are hundreds of articles on here regarding this topic so have a read. The logic behind it is that if you are eating 1200 cals per day and then burning 700 of them in the gym then your body is surviving on a mere 500 cals per day which is not enough. Your body will go into starvation mode and that is when many people suddenly find their weight plateaus.

    I find it hard to eat all of my exercise calories so I just ensure I eat at least half of them and I am building myself up to eat them all. Make sure you eat a hearty meal two hours before you exercise and then another meal after your workout and you will see you calories jump up. I am currently eating four meals a day on the days that I work out.
  • lisa_lotte
    lisa_lotte Posts: 216
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    ALWAYS eat you exercise calories or at leats half. I never used to eat them and was stuck at the same weight for ages. I stared reading the hundreds of forum posts on here (search for exercise calories and you will find loadse) and then started making more of an effort to eat as many as possible. Then the weight started dropping again. Did seem weird that eating more would make me lose weight, but your body needs enough or it will store everything as fat.

    Lisa
  • lisa_lotte
    lisa_lotte Posts: 216
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    My understanding of why we need to eat these calories back is to stop our bodies going into starvation mode. Without our exercise calories, we still have a deficit which will allow us to lose weight. Mine is set to 2lb per week. So if I burn 500 cals and eat them all back, I'm still going to lose 2lb. If you don't eat your cals back then your body will of course lose weight faster to start with, but then it will come to a standstill and what ever calories you consume will be stored, so eventually you will gain weight from eating very little. We all want to lose weight fast, but in order to keep it off for life we need to do it at a slow and steady pace

    Totally agree with this. When I use to eat less I lost weight to start off with, but then got stuck!! Now im eating more i have started losing it more consistently again.
  • Summerscoming
    Summerscoming Posts: 35
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    I dont eat mine as i measured my BMR well actually my sister in law did (shes a dietician) and for me to maintain my weight i need a measly 1358 cals per day.... and to lose weight im on 1200. if i eat many more than that even with the exercise, i'll just maintain.
  • MrsSassyPants
    MrsSassyPants Posts: 223 Member
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    Read what Banks posted!
  • lotusfromthemud
    lotusfromthemud Posts: 5,335 Member
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    I dont eat mine as i measured my BMR well actually my sister in law did (shes a dietician) and for me to maintain my weight i need a measly 1358 cals per day.... and to lose weight im on 1200. if i eat many more than that even with the exercise, i'll just maintain.

    Your BMR is NOT your maintenance calories. It is a resting metabolic rate (what you'd burn in a coma just to keep your body functioning). Your maintenance calories are your TDEE, (total daily energy expenditure) which is your BMR + calories burned through daily activity, without exercise. Very active people have higher TDEEs than very sedentary people.

    Respectfully, you may want to re-check your numbers.
  • Summerscoming
    Summerscoming Posts: 35
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    yeah but i do no exercise. im stuck in lecture theatres all day or labs. no walking or anything for me! lol based on my daily activity the calories needed is no wear near the gov't recommended 2000 a day...unfortunately! lol

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